Monday, November 17, 2008

Hyderabad,India.Nov, 2008: Shukoor Ahmed ran for a seat in the Maryland House of Delegates in 1998, after coming to America a decade earlier from Hyderabad, India. Campaigning door-to-door, he was surprised so many voters did not know who represented them! After his race ended slightly short of victory, he took advantage of his Master’s degree in Computer Technology and Political Science to build StateDemocracy.org, a website he launched in 2001 to connect citizens and lawmakers. His website’s motto encapsulated its mission: “Delivering Democracy to Your Desktop!”.Frank Islam similarly came to America to study, earning B.S. and M.S. Degrees in Computer Science. He too became a citizen and eventually founded QSS, Inc., a technology firm he recently sold to Perot Systems for $250 million.

He won numerous awards for leadership and established a personal foundation supporting educational, cultural and artistic causes worldwide.

Last month, Shukoor Ahmed handed over to Frank Islam the gavel as the new Chairman of the StateDemocracy Foundation, the nonprofit operator of the StateDemocracy.org website. Over its seven years, nearly 500,000 people have visited StateDemocracy.org. It remains the only 1-Stop portal where Americans living anywhere can connect with all their state and federal lawmakers. Earlier this year, the Foundation launched another website, LobbyDelegates.com, that enabled rank-and-file Democrats to lobby “Super Delegates” -- the 800 top party officials who held the deciding votes in the very close Presidential primary between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Some 30,000 users lobbied Super Delegates to support their preferred candidate via this one-of-a-kind service, before Obama was finally nominated on August 28.

The StateDemocracy.org portal is now playing a key role in empowering voters to participate in America’s dramatic General Elections on November 4. It offers citizens free online access to: (1) voter registration, (2) absentee ballots and (3) a polling place locator. These tools all work for any jurisdiction in the nation. The site also offers widgets that can be installed on other civic websites for use by their visitors. Even facebook.com offers these tools for its users to add to their own Profile page, to facilitate voting among their visiting friends. As he takes charge amid America’s historic election, Mr. Islam has embraced the opportunity to give back to his adopted nation by using Internet technology to expand civic engagement. He noted that in October alone, users of StateDemocracy.org doubled compared to the previous nine months, largely due to demand for absentee ballots -- yet another sign of the record-breaking U.S. voter turnout expected this year.Mr. Islam hopes to use the entrepreneurial skills that brought him so much business success to similarly boost the Foundation to its next level. His goals as Chairman include recruitment to diversify the Board’s expertise, methodical strategic planning, greater grant funding and expanded partnerships with kindred organizations. Shukoor Ahmed, who will remain on the Foundation’s Board, was recognized last month for the web technology firm he founded, V-Empower, Inc. It was named as the 7th fastest growing technology firm in the Washington, DC area last year. V-Empower builds websites for political candidates and organizations in the U.S., and increasingly in other nations as well. Not one to forget his homeland, Mr. Ahmed also created a similar website for citizens in India -- IndiaDemocracy.org - which has attracted nearly 50,000 users since it was launched in December 2002. It remains India’s only civic networking portal, empowering users to contact their lawmakers, as well as share news, photos, videos and blogs about politics in India.Both of these sons of India can claim to be carrying on the legacy to the wider world of renowned Indian mathematician Aryabhatta, who is credited with inventing the concept of “zero” -- the very foundation for all computer programming. So, it is fitting that two natives of India, the world’s largest democracy, are dedicated to using the power of technology to strengthen civic participation in the world’s oldest democracy, the United States of America!

Frank F. Islam is a successful entrepreneur and investor based in metropolitan Washington, DC. He is the Chairman/CEO of FI Investment Group LLC (FIIG), an investment firm he founded in 2007. FIIG focuses on providing growth capital to emerging companies, as well as managing specialized and branded funds. His investment style centers on innovative strategies for value creation, such that he is often the first to invest within a new economic paradigm. Previously, Mr. Islam was the founder and CEO of QSS Group. QSS Group was an Information Technology company which generated a revenue of $300 Million. Through QSS, Mr. Islam garnered multiple industry awards for leadership, entrepreneurship and excellence. In 1999, Mr. Islam was recognized by the Ernst and Young as Maryland Entrepreneur of the Year. The US Small Business Administration selected him as the Small Business Person of the Year of the Washington DC Metropolitan Area in 2001.Mr. Islam has been an active participant in the Information Technology, Aerospace Engineering Services and Systems Integration business for more than 25 years. He holds a B.S. and M.S. Degrees in Computer Science from the University of Colorado. His extensive business development experience within the Federal Government sector was the key to the remarkable growth of QSS. Mr. Islam is a well-known philanthropist whose private foundation supports educational, cultural and artistic causes worldwide. He participates in a number of non-profit organizations as a board member, such as TiE –DC and the Strathmore Center for the Arts (located in Montgomery County, Maryland), as well as chairing the StateDemocracy Foundation. He speaks often at a variety of commercial and non-profit forums, and is frequently included in press coverage. Mr. Islam hosts a TV show “Washington Current Review” on MHz Networks.In all endeavors, whether in the world of business or charity, Mr. Islam strives to create opportunities that are sustainable and uplifting for humanity -- always guided by the virtues of hard work, focus, quality, innovation and kindness!